


Seafoam and Sand

by wholewheatpopcorn



Category: Original Work
Genre: M/M, beach immortal au
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-14
Updated: 2020-08-14
Packaged: 2021-03-05 19:06:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,096
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25890316
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/wholewheatpopcorn/pseuds/wholewheatpopcorn
Summary: Being an immortal, Dov has grown accustomed to bidding farewell to his lovers.
Relationships: Remy | Reverse Muse / Dov | Reverse Virus





	Seafoam and Sand

**Author's Note:**

> Beach Immortal AU: Dov is an immortal who lives by the beachside. He has summer flings with mortals looking to get away and Remy is one of them. 500 years later, he meets Remy again! This is based on a writing prompt.

Time passes in such a strange way. 

For an immortal like Dov, years pass in a blink of an eye. One year, twelve months, three hundred and sixty five days. It’s nothing compared to the countless millennia of experience Dov has under his belt. Compared to his entire life span, which has gone on much too long to be considered normal, a year is nothing more than a flutter of his lashes. An exhale of breath. A twitch of his fingers. It is nearly nothing. 

Yet, when he’s sitting with his toes buried in warm sand, with the sun bearing down and the gulls crying above, Dov finds that seconds can stretch on for an eternity. 

But it’s not unpleasant. In fact, it’s far from. It’s peaceful. It’s nice. 

Dov sighs softly and digs his feet a little further under the sand.

There're five seagulls soaring over head. Another four scavenging the beaches for food tourists left unattended. Two more are bobbing along the sea, pushed gently by the ripples of the waves. Six more are perched by the rocks at the bottom of the cliff, sun tanning. 

It seems another pair of gulls has joined the flock, Dov muses. He props his arms behind him and cranes his head up towards the sky, basking in the warmth that presses against his skin. Seventeen gulls total. There were fifteen before but now there are seventeen. Seventeen seems quite big for a seagull flock but Dov doesn’t know enough about seagulls to know if it is truly a strange phenomenon. Maybe he should start looking into it, he lives by the sea after all. 

He drags his gaze down and squints at the people populating the beach. The number has dwindled considerably since the morning, but that makes sense to Dov. It’s later in the afternoon and the sun sets in two hours. People are bound to go home. Dov, too, knows he should get going but he finds himself reluctant to peel himself away from his spot. Maybe just a bit longer. It doesn’t matter anyways. 

The minutes tick by. He breathes in salty air and counts the seconds between each crash of the waves against the shore. The sun begins the drip slowly down the horizon and just as he begins to push himself up off the sand, something catches his eye. 

A person? 

And a dog, he notes afterwards. A person and a dog strolling along the shore. They’re a bit distant but Dov can make out enough to tell the person has their pants rolled up to their knees. He can’t tell what it is but something about the person stirs up something buried deep inside him and before he knows it he’s lunging forward, chasing after this mysterious stranger. 

His feet pound down against the sand and he gets closer and closer until—

He stops just behind the person, doubling over to catch his breath. The person, man, turns around and Dov digs deep into his memory, deep, deep in— for anything— on the tip of his tongue— it’s just right there—

“— Remy.” He breathes out and there’s something rising within him, strangling his heart and lungs, something dark and desperate. 

“.... Dov?” Dov looks up to see a face that mirrors his own surprise. 

They relocate to the top of the cliff side because it’s a better place to have private discussions and because Remy insists on climbing up to watch the sunset. Dov wants to express concerns about the dog tailing Remy’s heels but he figures Remy probably trained the dog well enough to eliminate the risk of it tumbling off the cliff in a bout of canine curiosity. If he remembers anything about Remy, which he’s slowly beginning to, it’s that Remy loves dogs over everything else and would never do anything to put one in danger. 

They perch at the very edge of the cliff, where the dirt and grass section off into solid stone. Dov kicks his legs idly and watches the waves crashing below him. 

“So what brings you here of all places?” Dov finally asks, looking over at Remy. Remy looks almost peaceful as he studies the horizon. 

“I came chasing old memories.” Remy looks over at him, then, a wry smile touching his lips. “I didn’t expect to actually find one here.” 

“I didn’t expect to see you again either.” Dov offers a somewhat smile, still struggling with emotions that he can’t quite name. They ripple and flash below icy surfaces, leaving Dov only to wonder. “I figured you died or something. Not many people live for over five hundred years, after all.” Dov attempts, trying to make light of the situation. 

“I figured _you_ died.” Remy shoots back, snarky but good humored. They share a look and dissolve into soft laughter. Dov’s chest lightens up a little but not quite enough to shake the strange mood welling up within him. 

“And yet here we are.” Remy says, sighing as he looks up at the sky. 

“Here we are indeed.” Dov agrees, following his gaze. They sit in peaceful silence for a little while. 

“Do you still live in that little beach house?”

“Of course!” He straightens up and stretches his arms out in front of him. “It’s a great location, why would I give it up? Just slap the newest technological advances on it and it’s perfect!” His small white beach house comes to mind. It’s gem hidden away from society, nestled on a secluded beach cliff, and he’s far too attached to it now to ever give it up. There’s too many memories confined within those wood panel walls, both good and bad memories. He thinks, distantly, that he might have a problem with letting things go but he makes peace with the idea. It’s not like it matters anyways. 

“Aren’t you worried someone is going to get suspicious?” Remy presses, turning to him with his eyebrow raised. It’s not hard to understand what Remy means but Dov shrugs it off. 

“It’s a home that’s been passed down through the Tyler family.” He declares in return, offering a cheeky grin. Remy snorts and rolls his eyes, but does nothing to hide the small smile on his face. Dov’s heart skips. 

“How strange it is that all of the men of the Tyler family look the same!” Remy exclaims, feigning an expression of surprise. Dov nods solemnly, using his index finger and thumb to stroke an imaginary beard. “The genetics of the family must truly be something great!”

“I change up my look every few years anyways. It’s not like anyone pays close enough attention to notice.” Dov says after a while, looking wistful and nostalgic. Remy shoots him a look of disbelief— understandably so, he looks just as he did when he met Remy 500 years ago. His shoulders hunch up defensively. “I’m recycling the look!” His words earn another snort from Remy’s beautiful mouth. 

“And I don’t suppose you recycle names too?” He teases and Dov suddenly finds it difficult to look Remy in the eyes. 

“Not entirely...” He says a bit evasively, ducking his head to study the grooves in the rock. He can feel Remy’s piercing gaze on him and a part of him is already shriveling up with embarrassment. 

“Don’t tell me you’ve just been using the name Dov, under the guise of being named after your imaginary father, who was named after his imaginary father, and so forth?” Dov’s selective silence speaks multitudes and Remy blinks, then throws his head back and howls with laughter. Dov’s face turns red, then redder still as Remy’s laughter drags on. 

“It’s not that funny!” He protests to no avail and Remy is doubled over now with tears of laughter welling up in his eyes. “It’s a real thing! People actually do it, it’s not that strange!” Remy’s laughter is never ending. Dov’s shame is eternal. 

Remy gasps in a breath, wiping away his tears as he fails yet again to suppress his chortles. “You’re adorable.” He offers through his peels of laughter, looking too amused to care intensively about what he just said. Dov can feel his cheeks warm again, for a different reason this time, and the giddiness that trickles in is almost enough to make him forgive Remy’s bout of mockery. 

“What do you do instead?” He’s desperate to change the subject, he can only withstand so much humiliation. Which, debatably, is a lot of humiliation already. Remy’s laughter tapers off but an easy smile remains on his lips. 

“I change my name every 60 or so years, move around locations, things like that.” Something about the words, the way Remy says them, sparks something within Dov. Curiosity, he decides. 

“Is Remy your real name?” The sun is beginning to fade away entirely, Dov notes, but despite the dimming light he has no trouble in seeing Remy’s unreadable expression. 

“No.” Comes the reply and Dov inclines his head. He thought about so, it’s just something else to have his suspicions confirmed. Yet before he can open his mouth to ask more about it, Remy beats him to the chase. 

“I was never a fan of my birth name.” Oh. Dov fidgets in his seat, nodding in hesitant comprehension. “You can just keep calling me Remy. It sounds better when it’s coming from your mouth anyways.” Any feelings of sympathy are immediately dashed by Remy’s smooth, flirty tones (Dov quite enjoys it though and he readily files the knowledge away for safekeeping). 

“What’s your dog’s name?” He asks, lips curling up when he sees how pleased the question makes Remy. Oh, Remy. He still has so much pride in his dogs. It’s a bit adorable, Dov admits to himself. 

“Pax.” Remy declares as he runs his hands through the dog’s fur. The dog in question has been lounging in the space between him and Remy the entire time. He wonders if it’s worn out from running on the beach. It seems quite passive at the moment. 

Pax. It’s a familiar name and when Dov looks closer at Remy’s dog he finds the breed even more familiar. Of course he does, he used to own a dog of the same name and breed after all. Dov’s face splits into a shit-eating grin. “Wow, you really were chasing old memories, huh?” 

Remy declines to answer but the twitch in his fingers and almost nonexistent dust of pink on his cheeks is enough for Dov. 

“I’m allowed to be nostalgic every now and then.” Remy harrumphs, occupying himself with the steady stroke of his fingers through Paz’s thick fur. A part of Dov wishes he were Pax, if only to feel Remy’s long fingers sifting through his hair like he used to do. Another part brews in his returning inner turmoil, a slowly simmering concoction of buried emotions he’s not ready to face. 

Silence descends.

The sun has been completely replaced by the moon at this point yet Dov isn’t bothered by the night chill at all. In the distance, Dov can see the faint flicker of the local lighthouse powering up to life. 

“I’m sorry.” Remy’s words are almost carried away by the wind, they’re spoken so softly. There’s a sinking feeling in Dov’s stomach that only grows when he hears the words. He doesn’t want to ask, but he knows he has to. 

“What for?” He asks hoarsely, licking his dry lips. He’s not looking at Remy, but he knows Remy isn’t looking at him either. 

“For leaving.” 

He recognizes the feeling he’s been struggling to name now: bitterness. Soul wracking bitterness and hurt and it hurts so much, picking at old wounds he thought he’d gotten over. His fingers are curling painfully over the edges of the rock beneath him but he can’t bring himself to care. 

He hates feeling this way, feeling so weak and vulnerable. He hates having to acknowledge that he’s lost Remy before, he hates knowing that he wasn’t enough to make Remy stay especially with the realization that Remy’s immortal like him. He hates the idea that a stupid part of him has always been torn up over this. He hates knowing that Remy isn’t the first one to have left him and he hates that he feels like he looses a piece of his heart every time someone leaves him. He almost hates Remy for making him remember, making him go through the onslaught of emotions he went through all those years ago. 

“Why did you leave?” He speaks with a bit of difficulty but he still can’t bring himself to look at Remy. Not yet, the emotions are too raw. He knows the question he asked isn’t going to help but he needs to know regardless. 

Remy doesn’t reply. The sound of the waves crashing against the rocks below is all that fills Dov’s ears and he wishes they were loud enough to cover up how ragged his breathing is getting. This was dumb— He shouldn’t have approached Remy— He shouldn’t have asked— He—

Then, Remy speaks. “I was afraid of the commitment.” His voice is filled with so much raw emotion— regret? — that it snaps Dov out of his despair. 

He’s..... never heard Remy sound quite so emotive before.... so vulnerable. 

Remy sucks in a breath before continuing with a carefully controlled tone. “That summer I’d really only planned to stay for a short vacation. I wasn’t expecting to meet anybody.” Dov is silent but looking over at Remy isn’t as hard as it was a few moments ago. 

“Then I met you and you were—“ Remy runs his hand through his bangs and gives a helpless look, “— great, actually. You were wonderful, and funny, and kind. I’ve never had more riveting conversations with anyone else, and what absolutely nailed me was the sheer capacity of your compassion.” There’s a harsh laugh now but Dov knows instinctively that there’s no insult hidden in the sound. “Even when I told you I was leaving, you drove me to the airport— who does that?” 

“I found myself thinking more and more about you. Being with you made me feel something I hadn’t felt in a long time, and it absolutely terrified me. I didn’t want to put myself through the pain of loving a mortal and having to watch them die again. I thought it would be better to cut it off before I got any more attached.”

Remy trails off then clears his throat. “So I left.” 

Oh.

The anger and bitterness is still there, Dov notes, but it’s not as consuming as before. Words won’t wipe away hurt that has festered over centuries, but they’re a good start and time and goodwill can only help. Luckily, Dov has an ample amount of both. 

“Have you lost a partner before?” Dov asks quietly, after a moment of deliberation. 

“Yes.” Remy looks a bit lost in his own memories and Dov can’t help how his heart softens. “Have you?” 

Dov nods. “Yeah.” He affirms, just to clarify his intent. “It sucks.” He tacks on and Remy quirks a wry smile. 

“It does.” Remy agrees, exhaling softly. Dov hums lowly in response, gazing out at the open sea then turning back to Remy. 

Breathe in. Breathe out. 

“I think your way of addressing your emotional issues was stupid.” Dov starts off, noting carefully how Remy raises a brow and inclines his head. “Your fear of making a commitment that could expose you to pain hurts others instead and that’s a pretty dick move. Furthermore, I’m hard pressed to believe that your approach saved you from any pain at all.”

Remy blinks but doesn’t interrupt him, so Dov continues on his tirade. “Running away from your problems is also a pretty terrible way to solve your problems. It doesn’t even solve the problems, it just shoves it onto other people to solve.”

Dov sucks in another breath, “Your decisions hurt me, it just felt like you were playing with my feelings. I felt terrible for months after you left. It makes me a little angry to know that the reason you left was because you were too scared to commit to what you thought was a mortal relationship. I think avoiding doing things just to avoid potential pain is stupid and dumb and it takes away your opportunities to truly enjoy for positive and fun experiences.” 

Remy is wincing a bit but he’s still holding Dov’s gaze so Dov figures that’s a good sign. “But, I can understand where you were coming from and I don’t hate you for it. I’m a bit angry, yes, but I forgive you.” Dov relishes in the look of surprise that flashes across Remy’s face. Oh, if only he had a camera to capture the moment. But it was fine. “It’s been five hundred years, I think we both deserve to move on from the shackles of the past that bind us.” 

Remy gives a breathy little laugh, then, and tilts his head up to the sky. “I guess I needed to hear that from you.” The words bring a smile to Dov’s mouth. He knows how uncomfortable emotionally charged talks make Remy, he remembers it in countless memories of stiff awkwardness, and he can’t help but appreciate that at least Remy cared enough to have the conversation with him. It’s small steps, but steps nonetheless. (And maybe he’s rationalizing a little but it’s fine.) 

So, he takes another deep breath and plunged forward before he can second guess himself. “Do you want to go for coffee tomorrow morning? It’ll be a date.” He asks because he knows he’s the only one who can, because he knows that Remy won’t after all that he’s done. Dov asks because he wants to be honest to both Remy and himself: he’s lonely and he’s missed Remy. The memories he shares with Remy are precious to him and he almost can’t believe he forgot them in the first place. He can’t deny that he wants to feel the same things again, and he knows that things won’t be the same after all this time but it’s a step in the right direction. 

His heart is hammering but the look of surprise that flickers across Remy’s face for a second time makes up for the nerves. “Let’s do it properly this time.” Dov offers a smile and Remy mirrors it after a moment of hesitation. 

“It’s a date then.” 

Dov’s heart flutters and finally, after all this time, the weight in his chest lifts.


End file.
